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The Week In Studies: Fish Like Bach, Workplaces Hate Millennials, And Facebook Regret

Here's something you didn't know about the world: over at Japan's Keio University, there are scientists huddled around pigeons and goldfish, playing them classical music to try and figure out their favorite composer.

We personally hadn't given much thought to whether pigeons preferred Bach or Stravinsky, but maybe we're short-sighted. (They prefer Bach, by the way. So did sparrows. What an obvious choice, man.) Goldfish could differentiate between classical music, surprising researchers who had mistakingly believed them to be fairly stupid creatures. Scientists believe that they, too, lean towards Bach. Somewhere, Stravinsky is rolling over in his grave.

by Jenny Hollander

Surprising: Pigeons, Goldfish, And Sparrows Like Bach

Here's something you didn't know about the world: over at Japan's Keio University, there are scientists huddled around pigeons and goldfish, playing them classical music to try and figure out their favorite composer.

We personally hadn't given much thought to whether pigeons preferred Bach or Stravinsky, but maybe we're short-sighted. (They prefer Bach, by the way. So did sparrows. What an obvious choice, man.) Goldfish could differentiate between classical music, surprising researchers who had mistakingly believed them to be fairly stupid creatures. Scientists believe that they, too, lean towards Bach. Somewhere, Stravinsky is rolling over in his grave.

Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News/Getty Images

Obvious: Some People Regret Their Facebook Posts

A stunning new study reveals that a quarter of people regret something that we posted on social media at some point: a drunk Tweet, a melancholy Facebook post, a moody Instagram shot of a lonely tin of baked beans, an Internet simulation of what you and your ex-boyfriend's child would have looked like... Anyway, not the point.

Seriously: only a quarter regret these things?

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Surprising: Sitting A Lot Linked To Depression

We already knew that sitting most of the day wasn't exactly healthy — it's previously been linked to an increased risk of heart disease and diabetes. But you probably didn't know that the longer you spend sitting down, the higher your likelihood of depression.

Australian researchers grouped participants — all women, and all over 50 — into categories depending on how long each day they spent sitting down. For those who didn't do any exercise, and spent a lot of time sitting down, their risk of depression increased by 99 percent . Seriously. That's not a typo. Go and do some bloody walking.

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Obvious: New Teachers Are The Most Enthusiastic

Hey, guess what kind of teachers are the most enthused and engaged about their work? Is it veteran teachers, worn down by years of being ignored by twenty children all at once? Mind-blowingly, no, it's not — it's teachers with less than a year at the job.

Apparently, brand-new graduate teachers are the most engaged with their work. We get it. Kids seem cute at first. Give them some time.

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Surprising: Employees Don't Like Millennials

Sure, millennials have a reputation for being kind of lazy and entitled — but that's all kind of a rumor, right? Not according to employers, who think that their millennial employees are the worst of the bunch.

Apparently, those who were born between 1980 and 2000 tend to be viewed as easily distracted and having a poor work ethic. One complaint that apparently comes up a lot is that Millennials think they deserve promotions, while managers strongly disagree. Not entitled at all...

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Obvious: China Censors Social Media

A new study out of Harvard University has found that censorship in China is "the largest selective suppression of human communication in the history of the world."

Well, yes, because they ban most of the communication tools on the Internet, and China has roughly 1,354,040,000 people in it.

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Surprising: Owning A Gun is the Best Predictor Of Suicide

Suicide prevention agencies have long struggled to figure out how to predict suicides, thus making it easier to stop in its tracks. Well, it turns out that suicidal behavior isn't the most common trait in those who do kill themselves — it's gun ownership .

As in, if you have a gun, you're more likely to commit suicide than if you're exhibiting actual suicidal symptoms.

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Obvious: Americans Are More Concerned About Privacy

In a mind-blowing research study, experts found that lately, more people want to protect their privacy. Well. Yes. This what one might call "cause and effect." Edward Snowden, anyone? NSA? Ringing any bells?

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Surprising: Meditating Makes You Tough-Skinned

Yeah, meditating is healthy and zen and everything, but it's difficult to find the time to sit down and, um, think about nothing for a while. Except, maybe it's time to start: according to a new study, meditating makes you super-resilient to stress and other emotional pitfalls.

The study's author said that it trains the body to maintain a standard of "well-being" that would otherwise fluctuate. All sounds very X-Men to us, but yes, um, ommmmmm.

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